Obituaries

"Let me say first that he was a superb professional, with all that that implies to so many of
you who have come here today to honour him and to mourn him. He understood the work
which had to be done and the tasks which had to be undertaken; he tackled these in such a
way that confidence was generated in him and in our ability to rise to the demands imposed
by our remit. He saw the boundaries, as it were, and was determined to reach them. I am
saying something about clarity of mind and a lot about discipline and I am suggesting that in
his relaxed informal way he was setting standards of achievement for us all.
"Yet there was more. He had a remarkable capacity for grasping issues quickly and then
elucidating them for the benefit of all of us. He possessed the skill to marshal the relevant
statistics and information needed to provide a basis for the report's recommendations. He
was a meticulous drafter, a word-spinner of real quality: we were often astonished, as one of
us has said, at how quickly he could turn our incoherent speech into fluent prose.
"This is a sad, sad day. But it is not my last word. I feel overwhelmingly a sense of gratitude
to John for who he was and what he did, for me and for many others. I shall not forget him."
Richard Michael Goldman (1947 - 2012)
Richard Michael Goldman was born in Londonon the 4 th December, 1947. He grew up in
Cricklewood with his parents and older brother, Gordon (also a Haberdasher’s pupil). He
attended Haberdashers school and gained A levels in science subjects. However, he was
not quite sure of his future path, so on Gordon’s recommendation, their parents took Richard
to a careers advisor. The advice given, after all sorts of tests and interviews was intriguing.
The conclusion was that Richard would either make a very good accountant – or a religious
leader! As it happened, Richard managed to shine in both of these areas.
From the start it was a very disciplined training as regards accountancy. The exams are not
easy and Richard often rose early to study before his working day at Malvern & Co. inGreat
Portland Street, where he eventually rose up the ranks to become a junior partner. In 1975
he met Jill, a secretary/PA, who also sang and wrote songs. They met on a blind date and
were married a year or so later, setting up home in Wembley. Around six years later, Richard